ACTRIMS is proud to present an annual lecture named in honor of the late Donald Paty, MD. Instituted in 2005, the year following Dr. Paty’s death, the lecture provides an opportunity for ACTRIMS’ audiences to hear from a prestigious clinician or researcher selected for their knowledge, accomplishments and contributions related to multiple sclerosis.

About Donald Paty
1936-2004

Donald Paty was one of the world leaders in multiple sclerosis research and clinical care. He was a central player in almost all the important developments in MS since the 1970’s the development of the Poser and the McDonald Criteria, multidisciplinary clinic care, the initial clinical trials of interferons, the use of MRI in clinical trials, the standards of MS care, MRI criteria for diagnosis, and clinical trial design.

Born in Beijing, China, where his parents were medical missionaries for the Southern Methodist Church, he was proud to return with his sons in 2001 to the hospital in Changzhou that his father built to speak about his parents work there in the 1920’s and 1930’s.

He trained at Emory University, Duke University, and Newcastle in England, with periods in between in the services and the Overseas Medical Corps. He immigrated to Canada following his postgraduate studies and initiated the MS Clinic at the University of Western Ontario, which became a model for the clinic system in Canada, providing multidisciplinary care, education and research. He moved to the University of British Columbia in 1980 to head the developing center in MS there with its leading neuroimaging unit.

Dr. Paty always enjoyed family life, his interests and hobbies, and the company of his many friends. He played cello and clarinet and was a passionate expert on the music and opera of Mozart. He and his wife Jo Anne were enthusiastic travelers and scuba divers. He dealt with the symptoms of lymphoma, chemotherapy, bone marrow transplant with equanimity and lived a productive and active decade after diagnosis.

Always a team player, he encouraged dozens of young colleagues. Charming, cheerful and modest, he was always willing to give everyone else the credit but his contributions have been recognized by MS organizations. He was awarded the first Dystel Prize offered by the National MS Society as well as the Charcot Prize given by the International Federation of MS Societies. A Dr. Donald Paty Career Development Award is offered MS Society of Canada, and both ACTRIMS and the Consortium of MS Centers have named lectures for Dr. Donald Paty.

— T Jock Murray, MD

Past Lectures